


Back in business

by ladyinsaeng



Series: New Beginnings [5]
Category: IRIS (TV), 선암여고 탐정단 | Seonam Girls High School Detectives, 앵그리맘 | Angry Mom, 힐러 | Healer
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-25
Updated: 2017-05-25
Packaged: 2018-11-04 20:45:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,910
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10998672
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ladyinsaeng/pseuds/ladyinsaeng
Summary: Kim Moonho is investigating a big case. The Healer business is still going strong.





	Back in business

Sometimes, he thought about retiring. Being Kim Moon Ho, 46, CEO of a news company had sucked out all the fun of being a reporter. Sure, whenever Someday News got its hands on a politics scandal, the high of unraveling the truth was still the same, but Young Shin was the one at the front line now. Several news companies had tried to recruit her after the live bacteria case ten years ago. However, she had remained loyal to him as long as he made sure they'd never have to censor themselves and keep fighting for the right causes. So he had kept training her, teaching her everything he knew, as their news site kept growing to the point they even started a daily news short broadcast a year ago. Still, he could no longer project himself, he could no longer dream because he had achieved everything he wanted. At least career-wise because there had been a price to pay, a price he was reminded of every night as he walked into his empty penthouse.

"Took you long enough," a female voice greeted him as he was taking off his shoes in the entrance and he spotted a pair of black biker boots.

Moon Ho briefly closed his eyes. She was back, although he had told her not to, unless for business reasons. That was probably why she was here, he convinced himself as he turned around the hallway corner leading to the open space made of the living room and the kitchen where she was cooking.

"What are you doing here?" he asked with a stern voice that had never fazed her.

"I'm making seaweed soup."

"Why?"

"Because it's your birthday, Mr. Reporter."

He sighed. "It's not my birthday."

She flashed him a grin. "It will be in 47 minutes," she sang. She tasted the soup and turned off the stove. "It's done and I think you will like it." She removed her apron and dropped it to the floor as she walked up to him. "What should we do now?"

"The dishes. You know I hate it when you leave such a mess in the kitchen."

"Do you want to punish me?"

His body was already responding to her teasing. As always. He wouldn't give in this time, though.

"How did you get into my apartment anyway? I changed the code last week." He turned around to walk away, but that was the wrong move as she hugged him from behind.

"You know things like this don't stop me."

He let out an impatient sigh and freed himself only for her to twist his arm and spin him around without even hurting him. She cupped his face and looked straight in his eyes.

"Don't act like you're not happy to see me," she said with less confidence a few seconds later.

"You shouldn't be here."

She frowned and stepped back. This was the opportunity to walk away, to stop this nonsense. And yet, he stayed as she undressed in front him. Her tank top, her bra, her skinny jeans. And there was the challenge in her eyes.

"Do you really want me to leave?" she asked.

"No," he murmured, taking the first step. She made him stumble as she jumped into his arms. "Easy. I'm an old man, remember?"

"Shut up. You ain't to me," she said, leading him into a fierce kiss. Somehow, he managed to carry her to the sofa where he sat down with her straddling him.

"Wait, wait," he said out of breath as he tried to grab her hands. Too late. His shirt was ripped open. "This was my favorite shirt."

"I'll buy you another one, Mr. Reporter," she replied, trailing kisses up his neck.

"You said that twice already and I'm still waiting."

She chuckled and leaned back enough to meet his gaze. "Are you really pissed off about a fucking shirt when you're about to have the greatest sex you've ever had?"

"Always so presumptuous," he commented, caressing her face. He knew her body by heart now. Each beauty spot, each scar from fights she never talked about. Her hair was kept short since she became the third Healer. Still, in the past 8 years, the confident 21-year-old tomboy he was impressed by had turned into a woman aware of her power of seduction he had finally let himself fall for a year ago.

She grabbed his hands and guided them down her body. The little moans she made tested out his patience. "You're so beautiful," he heard himself say.

She thanked him with a kiss. It was slow this time, as if she was no longer on the run, as if she wanted to enjoy every second of the moment they were sharing. Still, Moon Ho woke up to an empty bed the next morning.

"Dae Yong?" he couldn't help but call out as he emerged from the room. The kitchen was clean, but the seaweed soup on the table was still warm, so she must not have been gone for too long. The doorbell rang. Maybe it was because it was his birthday, maybe it was because he enjoyed the little pain along his spine that reminded him of his night, but he didn't check twice and opened the door after readjusting his bathrobe.

"Kim Moon Ho?" the delivery guy asked, his cap low on his eyes.

"It's me."

It happened too fast. Moon Ho failed to block the knife and his attacker would have stabbed him a second time if it weren't for two women dressed in all-black starting to fight him. Leaning against the door, Moon Ho was panting as he clenched his side and slid to the floor. Pain kept him from processing the situation as he struggled to stay conscious. His attacker managed to push the two women and ran away.

"Yeon Hwa!" the tallest woman shouted as the other woman was about to run after him.

"We have to stop him!" she protested. "Sun Hwa! Where are you going?"

The other woman had stepped over him to get inside and came back a few seconds later with his cell phone.

"What are you doing?" Yeon Hwa asked.

"Trying to save his life." She crouched down to be at his eyes level. "I'm calling 911. You tell them someone attacked you and ran away. You don't mention us. Understood?"

"Understood," he managed to say. The female voice at the other line was somehow reassuring. "I just got stabbed by a stranger. I need help." He stayed focused long enough to give his address.

Sun Hwa hung up and left the cell phone by his side. She placed his hand back on the kitchen towel she had covered his wound with meanwhile. "You should be all right."

"Let's get out of here," Yeon Hwa said.

The last thing Moon Ho remembered was the encouraging smile Sun Hwa gave him before he blacked out.

***

The hand caressing his face lured him back to consciousness. Moon Ho managed to keep his eyes open long enough to find Dae Yong by his side.

"Moon Ho?" she quietly called him, her hand still gently stroking his face.

"No Mr. Reporter today?" he asked and opened his eyes again. "If I knew I had to get stabbed for you to call me by my name...."

"Well, I see you still have bad jokes," she replied with fake annoyance. "Water?"

By the time she poured him a glass and helped him to sit up, Moon Ho was fully awake, and so was the pain. A couple of flowers bouquets and balloons were set around the hospital private room. "How long have I been here?"

"About 30 hours... Your wound wasn't that severe, so..." She helped him drink "They said you didn't wake up earlier most likely because you were already exhausted when you got hurt."

"And whose fault was that? Hey!" he protested when she took the glass away. "I was just kidding."

"Don't. You almost died."

"You just said my wound was nothing."

"You could have died."

Fear was something Moon Ho had never detected in her eyes. He had seen her fight ten guys at the same time, speed through Seoul's streets to make a delivery. Adrenaline was always bigger than danger, she had explained to him one night as she applied a pack of ice on her thigh after a tough fight allegedly forced her to rest at his place afterwards because it was closer than her home. However, in this very second, it was fear that made her hands shake. She might have noticed too because she put down the glass on the nightstand.

"Come here," he said after watching her pacing up and down the room for a moment, letting her get back her composure. She sat on the bed and took the hand he held out to her. "I'm fine."

"I should have been there."

"You might have been hurt too or worse..."

"They saw me leaving. They were there, waiting and I saw absolutely nothing."

"It's not your fault."

Dae Yong sighed and kissed his hand. "Once I get them, I'm going to make them pay," she promised.

"Healer doesn't kill."

"That doesn't mean Healer can't do some serious permanent damages."

"You don't mean physically, right?"

She lightly smiled. "I should go. It's way past visiting hours."

"Dae Yong, don't do anything stupid."

"How about you let us handle this and you just worry about getting better?"

"Sounds like you're already investigating."

"We'll talk about it once you fully recovered." She opened the door and a tall young man walked in. "This is Go Bok Dong. He will protect you when I'm not around."

"I really don't—"

Dae Young ignored his protest as she looked at Bok Dong. "Make sure to check everyone coming into this room."

"Yes, hyungnim," he replied and bowed.

Dae Young winked at Moon Ho and left.

"Why don't you call her noonim?" Moon Ho asked. Bok Dong didn't bother to reply and just kept staring at the wall.

***

"The view is incredible", Young Shin exclaimed from the balcony overlooking the ocean. "It makes me want to go on another honeymoon."

"Should we?" Jung Hoo asked, looking up from the laptop on the coffee table. "You know what happens every time we go on a honeymoon, right?"

"Dad said that we already have three boys, so we should give him a granddaughter now," she replied, walking back into the living room area of the hotel suite.

"Do you really need to have this discussion now?" Moon Ho asked only half-amused.

"Well, no," Young Shin admitted as she sat next to Jung Hoo on the sofa. "But we should definitely think about it."

"About the honeymoon or about a fourth kid?" Jung Hoo asked.

"Both?"

Moon Ho cleared his throat to bring back the attention on him. Through the years, he had gotten used to the love Young Shin and Jung Hoo expressed toward each other, might even have envied their spontaneity a little, but now wasn't one of those times. After spending a week at the hospital, he had been flown off to Jeju Island as soon as he had gotten discharged. It was for his own protection. That was all Jung Hoo had accepted to tell him on their way to the airport, promising him they'd come to see him in two days. Moon Ho knew better than trying to check the internet and getting the attention of whoever was after him. That was the only conclusion he had been sure of. The attack wasn't random. He was a target, might have been under surveillance for a while too. Dae Yong hadn't contacted him and Bok Dong refused to tell him any update on the situation Moon Ho was sure he received via text messages. Now that Jung Hoo and Young Shing were here, it was time to let him know what was going on.

"Okay. Ahjumma, you're on," Jung Hoo said, pressing a key on the laptop. Although there was no image, the insults from the other side came loud and clear. "Looks like Ha Jae messed up again."

"Who's Ha Jae?" Moon Ho asked.

"Kim Ha Jae, my first and future ex-trainee," Min Ja aka Ahjumma answered as she appeared on the flat TV screen on the wall. The silver hair peaking from under her knitted beanie showed her age, but her indie group fan fashion style was similar to what was wearing the 20-something woman bowing several times to apologize. "Enough." Ha Jae moved away and disappeared from the screen. "Moon Ho, how have you been? Are you eating your meals?" she asked. "I'm thinking of coming down there. I've been needing some vacation anyway."

"Ahjumma, just focus," Jung Hoo interrupted her, his voice calm but stern. He was back on Healer mode and had little to do with the lovey-dovey clumsy husband he was to Young Shin. "So what did you find?"

"Do you want the good news or the bad news first?"

"The bad news," Moon Ho answered.

Ahjumma waved her hand – it was probably a signal for Ha Jae – and the picture of a young man who could have been a model appeared.

"Isn't he photographer Ha Ra On?" Young Shin exclaimed after a few seconds.

Still off screen, Ha Jae apologized one more time while Ahjumma just shook her head. "You're too old for having a crush. Just ask him out on a date," she said, her voice exhausted as if she had already said those words countless times. "We're trying to work here. Can we have the right picture?" A black and white picture of Moon Ho appeared. "Thank you."

"At least it's a good picture of me," he commented. "What is it for?"

"So the bad news is: IRIS put a price on your head."

"IRIS? What's IRIS?" Young Shin asked, looking back and forth between Jung Hoo and Moon Ho.

"It's a secret organization. They're mostly known for arms trafficking," Jung Hoo replied, his gaze on Moon Ho. "Why would they go after you?"

"Probably because I've been investigating on them for the past six months," he simply replied.

"You've been investigating without telling any of us?" That was Young Shin. Despite the anger her voice betrayed, her reporter curiosity took over at once. "What did you find about them?"

Moon Ho hesitated. He only believed in facts and he still knew so little about it that he wasn't ready to share what were just doubts for now.

"They're out there trying to kill you. You were obviously getting close," Jung Hoo objected.

"What was the good news, Ahjumma?" Moon Ho asked, looking back at the screen.

"We might have a lead on the two women who saved you. Turns out they're sisters from North Korea. One of them actually worked for IRIS a couple of years ago. They're also on their wanted list. Hopefully, Dae Yong will be back with them tonight."

"We're going back to Seoul," Moon Ho declared. "If you want to know everything, then I need my files," he added, cutting off Jung Hoo and Young Shin's protest. 

"The safe house in Hongdae is ready," Ahjumma informed them. "Contact me when you're there."

***

The flight back wasn't enough for Moon Hoo to figure out what their next move should be. His penthouse had been under protection – thanks to Dae Yong – so everything was left intact. He got his laptop, tablet and files back.

While they were waiting for Dae Yong at the safe house, Jung Hoo and Young Shin carefully read over his notes on everything he had gathered for the past six months.

"Moon Seung Hyun... Why does the name sound familiar?" Young Shin asked suddenly.

"He escaped from prison about ten years ago after hypnotizing the guards," Moon Ho answered as he paced up and down the living room.

"It's just a urban legend," Young Shin replied with a smile that vanished away a few seconds later. "You mean this story was true?"

"It is. I met Dr. Frost, a therapist who was friend with him. Sort of. They grew up together. According to him, Moon Seung Hyun wants to create a world where chaos don't exist and in order to do that, he needs to control people's minds."

"And so he's working for IRIS now?" Jung Hoo asked, looking up from a file.

"I'm not too sure," Moon Ho answered as he checked his watch. "Moon Seung Hyun officially died in 2016, but we all know here how someone can easily "die" and start a new life." He sighed and checked the time again. It was close to midnight. "Dae Yong should be here by now."

Right on cue, the doorbell started ringing frenetically. Bok Dong immediately took out a knife while Jung Hoo only needed a glance to get Young Shin to run to a bedroom where she locked herself. Bok Dong waited for his signal before he pressed the visual intercom button.

"I'm Kim Sun Hwa. Some ahjumma told me I'd be safe here," a woman said, breathless.

Her all-black outfit was exactly the same, but Moon Ho didn't need it to recognize her. "Open the door."

"Let me check with—"

Jung Hoo got interrupted by Ahjumma herself who appeared on the living room TV screen. "Let her in. We have a big problem. IRIS got Dae Yong and Yeon Hwa."

**Author's Note:**

> Cameo by Go Bok Dong ("Angry Mom"), Kim Ha Jae (Seonam Girls High School Investigators).


End file.
